Let x be the shorter side....and x + 2 be the longer side.....so we have
x ( x + 2) = 15
x^2 + 2x = 15 subtract 15 from both sides
x^2 + 2x - 15 = 0 factor
(x - 3) ( x + 5) = 0
Set each factor to 0 and x = 3 or x = -5 [reject]
So the shorter side = 3 in